Candlestick



July 16, 1940. '.1. M. PowERs GANDLESTICK Filed Nov. 1o, 1957 2Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. JOHN M` POWERS July 16, 1940. J. M. POWERS2,208,279

' GANDLESTIGK Filed Nov. 1o, 1957 2 sheets-sheet 2 INVENTOR.

J'HN M PWRS ATT NEY.

Patented July Y 16, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT YOFFICE.

, CANDLEsTIoK John M. Powers, Cleveland Heights, Ohio ApplicationNovember 10,1937, serial No. 173,801 .1.5 claims. (o1. fst- 27) Thisinvention relates to automatically actuated Candlesticks adapted for useupon church altars etc. Candlesticks of this type generally embody atubular false candle housing constructed .and decorated to simulate acandle and mechanisrn within the' housing for automatically feeding anactual Candle upwardly within the housing against a suitable stop means.in such a fashion that the wick of the candle and the flame' arisingtherefrom extend above the upper end of the candle housing and producethe effect of a never shortening burning candle. As well known, properburning of devices of the above described character, that is burning ofa Candlestick with a proper flame and without running over of meltedwax, depends entirelyupon length of the exposed end of the candle wickwhich controls the size of the flame and therewith the amount ofl waxmelted kat the top of the candle, and on zoalignment of the flame withthe axis ofthe candle body eifecting symmetrical heating and melting ofthe wax at the upper end of the candle. Presently known candles andCandlestick structures `do not satisfy these requirements for properburning of a candle or candlestick, mainly, because these requirementsoppose each other. Thus the length of the exposed wick end of a candlecan be controlled only by specific wick construction giving the wick thetendency to bend 3o its upper end when burning, and bending of the wickend of a candle effects lateral shifting of the candle flame andtherewith unsymmetrical` heating and melting of wax at the top of thecandle. Such unsymmetrical heating of a canwith proper action of thefeeding mechanism of the Candlestick by wax dripped upon the movingparts of such mechanism.

It is the primary object of this invention'to wholly obviate thesedrawbacks in present day Candlesticks by providing an automaticallyactuated Candlestick with a durable, stable, incombustible wick.structure which extends a short distance downwardly into the top ofcandle-like 45'wickless wax body, the latter being in a customary mannerfed upwardly within a housing against an individual seating centeringand stop means. Another object of the invention is the provision of anautomatically actuated Candlestick with a stationary incombustible wickstructure embodying a heat conducting base portion in-k` dle effectsdripping of the candle and interferes combustible wick mounted on saidbase portion.

`A further object of the invention is the provision of an automaticallyactuated Candlestick with a stationary incom-bustible wick structure 5embodying a heat conducting base portion having heat conductingsupporting finger portions upwardly extended therefrom, anincoinbustible fibrous wick supported bysaid base portion and cap-likeperforated cover vmeans. at thetop of 10 said wick.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of anautomatically actuated candlestick with an incombustible wick structureincluding a wick of silicious, fibrous material such 15 as spun glass,the bers of which are mounted on a central post of heat conductingmaterial.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of anautomatically actuated candlestick with a specific Current and heatinsulat- 20 ing axially bored top member carrying in its axial bore anindividual heat conducting seating and sealing member for a Candle-likewax body, an incombustible wick structure including a silicious brouswick, and an electrical heating ele- 2" ment adjacent to said wick toeffect electrical igniting of the wick by current sent through theelectrical heating element.

With the above and other incidental objects inview, the inventionconsists in certain novel features of construction and combination oiparts, the essential elements oi' which are set forth in the appendedclaims; and a preferred form` of embodiment ofthe invention ishereinafter shown with reference to the drawings forming part of thespecication.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vsectional view partly invelevation through anautomatically actuated 40 candlestick with an ncombustible wickstructurelattached thereto. i

Fig. 2 is an enlarged top view of the Candlestick shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary enlarged sectional View 45 through' the upperportion of the can-dlestick, the section being taken on line 3--3 ofFig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional View on line 4--4 of Fig. l.

Fig'. 5 is a cross-sectional View on line 5-.5 50` of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional View on line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

Fig. '7 is a cross-sectional view on line 1 1 Fig. 8 is across-sectional View on line '8-8 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view on line 8 9 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 10 is a sectional view through the upper portion of thecandlestick, the section being taken on line lil-I0 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 1l is an assembly View of the stationary wick structure.

Figs. l2 through 16 show the individual parts of the wick structureshown in Fig. 11; thus Fig. 12 is a sectional view through the cap,

Figs. 13 and 14 are side and cross-sectional views of the wick.

Fig. 15 is a Sectional View partly in elevation of the supporting cupfor the wick and Fig. 16 is a sectional View partly in elevation of thesupporting element for the supporting cup.

Referring now more particularly to the exemplied form of the candlestickshown in the drawings 2 designates a supporting base which seats in itsrecessed bore 3 a candle shifting mechanism 4. This mechanism embodies astationary lower member 5 and a shiftable upper member 5 associated andcoupled with said lower member by means of a pulley arrangement 1mounted on a U-shaped guide post 8 of lower member 5. Upper member 6slidably engages with its U- shaped post 9 the guide post 8 of lowermember f 5, which post 9 supports at its upper end a candle supportingplatform I0 including a guide pin II upwardly extended from the recessedcentral area I2 of said platform. Pin I I engages with the recess I4 inthe lower end of a candlelike; wickless wax `body I5 and thus properlyaligns the body I5 with the shifting mechanism. A counterweight I6,suspended from pulley wires or cords i1 of the pulley arrangement 1,forces member B and body I5 upwardly into engagement with a centeringsealing and seating member i8 of a wick supporting cover structure I9,which latter is secured to a tubular, longitudinally slotted member 28resting on lower portion 5 and sleeved into bore 3 of base 2. A tubularlongitudinally Slotted skirting member 2l, decorated to simulate acandle, rotatably seats upon base 2 and thus permits ready access to thecandle shifting mechanism when a slot 22 in member 2I is brought intoalignment with a similar slot 23 in the tubular member 20.

Preferably, as shown', lower member 5 carries and supports two elongatedsmall tubes 24 and 25, which tubes are arranged symmetrically withintubular member 20 and extend through the entire length of said memberfor a purpose later to be described.

The top endof tubular member 20 supports the top or cover structure i9,mounting a permanent wick structure 28. Cover lstructure I9 is made ofheat and current insulating material such as fiber, glass, etc., andembodies a ring-shaped base portion 29, partly extended into tubularmember 20 and seated with its flange 30 upon the upper edge 3I thereof,and a ring-shapedtop portion 32 rigidly secured to said base portion 29.Top portion 32 of cover structure I9 is provided with oppositely`arranged sleeve-like extensions, an upper extension 34 and a lowerextension 35, which latter snugly ts the inside wall of bore 36 in baseportion 29 when portions 29, 32 are assembled. Preferably, top portion32 is recessed at its bottom face to form a ringshaped air circulatingchamber 31 betweeny as-v sembled portions 29 and 32. Air inlet andoutlet passages 38, 39 for. chamber 31 insurev proper circulation of airtherethrough. The lower extension 35 on top portion 32 seats thecentering sealing and seating member I8 and is countersunk to provide acircular stop shoulder 40 for said member, which is of doublecone-shaped form and engages the candlelike, Wickless wax body I5yieldingly forced toward said member by the shifting mechanism 4. Upperextension 34 of the cover structure I9 mounts the permanent wickstructure 28. This structure embodies a tubular base and supportingportion 42 of heat conducting material having rigidly attached theretotwo symmetrically arranged upwardly extended springing finger or armportions 43, 44 which yieldingly engage a circular groove 45 in the bore45 of upper extension 34 and securely suspend base and supportingportion 42 in the cover structure I9. The portion 42 of the wickstructure carries a cup-shaped holder 41 of heat conducting materialwhich embodies an integral downwardly extended stem 48 sleeved throughthe tubular base portion 42. The side and bottomwalls of the holder 41are perforated as at 5U and, in addition, slotted as at 5I to facilitateentering of melted wax into the holder and packing material 52 arrangedwithin said holder, which material tightly grips a wick 53 of spun glass54 wound around and interengaged with a wire core 55. The top portion ofwick 53 carries a cap or cover member 56 clamped to said wick andprovided at its upper end with openings or slots 51. f

The wick 53 draws melted wax similar to cornmonly used candle wicks andfeeds the necessary amount of wax to the flame of the Candlestick. Inaddition, the wick structure automatically controls the amount of waxmelted at the top of thewax body I5 by means of the upwardly extendednger or arm portions 43, 44. These arm portions, when freely exposed,are directly heated by radiation from the Aflame of the wick 53 andtransfer their heat through tubular portion 42 to the stem 48, whichstem engages and is slightly extended into the wax rbody I5. The heattransferred to stem 48 effects melting of the waxy and does not effectdirect melting of the wax body I5 except shortly after the Candlestickhas been lit. In this case, when all wax on wick 53 has been burnt olfand the candle ame has moved downwardly to the holder 41, the upperportion of member I8 is fully exposed to the radiating heat of the flameand directly eiects melting of the wax body I5. At this time wax body I5melts more rapidly and more wax is` melted than burnt by the flame.Consequently the melted `wax accumulates in the upper extension 34 andWhile slowly rising covers the member I8, the holder 41`r and partof-the nger portions 43, 44 until the melting of wax and its consumptionby the flame are in equilibrium.-

In this state melted wax transfers'suii'cient heat to the sealing memberI8 to soften the wax engaged therewith to permitv of inward shifting ofthe softened wax into the melting area controlled by stem 48 of the wickstructure 28.

The described Candlestick which is entirely automatically actuated andself adjusting may readily be refilled with a new wax body when slots`22 and ZSin members 2| and 20 respectively are brought into alignmentby rotation of member 2| and when platform lll is shifted downwardlywithout removal of the wax body l5 sticking to the sealing member I8.Such refilling and alignment of the reller with the stumps of the oldbody l5 is facilitated by recessing the bottom of each body l5 andpointing its top.

Candlesticks of the type described are well adapted for co-operationwith devices for lighting and extinguishing same, as the arrangements ofparts and the use of a cover member of insulating material for theCandlestick materially simpliiies the use of electrical lighting meansand extinguishing means. Such construction of a candlestick .embodiesthe elongated small tubes 24, 225. The tube 24 is used to carry aninsulated wire 58 with two current conducting leads 59, 59" and the tube25 serves to carry a stream of air to a blow-out nozzle 60 when a rubberball, not shown, or any other similar device connected to said pipe issuddenly compressed, as will be clearly understood from an inspection ofthe drawings. The lower ends of lead wires 59, 59. may be readilyconnected to a source of current, not shown, and the upper ends of saidwire leads are connected by means of spring contact members B4 to aheating and igniting coil 65 partly surrounding the wick 53 to morerapidly effect melting, vaporizing and igniting of the vapors of thewax.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is: i

l. In a Candlestick a housing, shifting means adapted to verticallyshift a candle-like body within said housing, a substantiallyring-shaped cover member for said housing, ring-shaped heat conductingmeans supported by said cover member and downwardly extended therefromfor stopping, centering and sealing a candle-like body when carriedupwardly by said shifting means, and an incombustible wick structureaxially extended through said cover member'and said stopping, centeringand sealing member, said wick structure including heat conducting meansmounting same on said cover member and extending said structuredownwardly into said wax body for heat exchange therewith.

2. In a candlestick a housing, shifting means adapted to verticallyshift a candle-like body within said housing, a substantiallyring-shaped cover member of heat insulating material for said housing,ring-shaped heat conducting means mounted in said cover member anddownwardly extended therefrom for stopping, centering and sealing acandle-like body when carried by said shifting means, and anincombustible wick structure axially extended through said cover membertended heat conducting arms arranged within said top member anddownwardly extended heat conducting means extending fully through saidtop member.

4. A Candlestick as described in claim 1, wherein said incombustiblewick structure embodies a heat conducting'base portion having upwardlyinclined heat conducting means arranged within said cover member, anddownwardly extended heat conducting means axially aligned with saidcover member, and a wick portion of incombustible fibrous materialsupported by said base portion.

5. A Candlestick as prescribed in claim 1, wherein said incombustiblewick structure embodies a heat conducting base portion having acup-shaped perforated body with upwardly inclined flattened arm portionsand a downwardly extended stein substantially axially alignedwith saidcover member, and a wick portion of incombustible brous materialsupported in the perforated body of said base portion.

6. A Candlestick as described in claim 2,

wherein said incombustible wick structure embodies a heat conductingbase portion adapted to centrally engage a candle-like wax body carriedby and shifted by said shifting means upwardly against said ring-shapedstopping and centering means, and a wick portion of incombustiblefibrous material mounted in said base portion, said wick portionincluding a heat conducting portion supporting said material.

7. A candlestick as described in claim 1, wherein said incombustiblewick structure embodies a heat conducting base portion adapted to engagein heat exchanging contact with a candle-like, wickless wax body whenshifted upwardly against said stopping, centering and sealing means, anda wick portion mounted in said base portion, said wick portion embodyinga heat conducting member and spun glass engaged with and supported bysaid member.

8. A Candlestick as described in claim 1, wherein said incombustiblewick structure embodies a heat conducting base portion arranged withinsaid top member, a wick portion of incombustible fibrous materialsupported in` said base portion and perforated cap means secured to andcovering the top end of said wick portion.

9. In a candlestick a tubular housing, a candlelike, wickless wax bodywithin said housing, shifting means adapted to support and verticallyshift said wax body, a substantially ring-shaped cover member of heatinsulating material for said housing, ring-shaped means of heatconducting material mounted in said cover member for stopping upwardmovement of said body and centering and sealing the top end of said bodywith respect to said cover member, heat conducting supporting means forapermanent wick arranged centrally within said cover member, inclinedupwardly extended attachment means on said supporting means forattaching same to said cover, downwardly extended heat transfer meansadapted to engage the top of said wax body when shifted against saidstopping means and al wick of incombustible fibrous material mounted insaid supporting means and upwardly extended therefrom.

10. A Candlestick comprising a tubular housing, a candle-like wicklesswax body within said housing, shiftable supporting means for said waxbody adapted to vertically shift said body in said housing, asubstantially ring-shaped cover member of heat insulating material forsaid housing, cone-'shaped ring means in said cover member adapted tostop upward movementl of said wax body and uid tightly seal itscircumferential top edge to said cover member, a heat conductingcup-shaped, perforated supporting member mounted within said covermemberand provided with upwardly and downwardly eX- tending heat transfermeans, and an incombustible wick of fibrous material mounted in saidcup-shaped supporting means, said upwardly ex-r tended heat transfermeans being exposed to the flame of said wick when ignited and saiddownwardly extended heat transfer means being extended through saidcone-shaped 'means for heat exchange contact with said candle-like,wickless Wax body. f

11. A Candlestick as described in claim 10, wherein the ring-shaped bodyof said cover member is chambered and provided with inlet and outletpassages to eiTect free air circulating through the chambered portion ofsaid cover member.

12. In a Candlestick a tubular housing, a candle-like, wickless wax bodywithin said housing, shifting means for supporting and verticallyshifting said wax body, a substantially ring-r ated heating and ignitingcoil for igniting said wick structure, said heating coil being directlyattached to said cover.

13. A candlestick as described in claim 12, wherein said wick structureincludes a wick of brous incombustible material, and wherein the heatingcoil is vertically coiled partly around said wick.

14. An automatically actuated Candlestick as described in claim 3,wherein said heat conducting upwardly extended arms are made ofspringing material adapted to frictionally engage the inner wall of saidring-shaped top member for removably seating said wick structure inproper working position.

15. In a Candlestick a tubular housing, a ringshaped cover of insulatingmaterial secured to said housing, a restricted cone-shaped ring in thebottom portion of said cover, a carriage within said tubular housingcapable of supporting a candle-like, wickless wax body between saidcone-shaped ring and said carriage, means urging said carriage towardsaid cone-shaped ring, an incombustible wick structure supported by saidcover member and extended centrally therethrough for heat exchangecontact with a wickless wax body carried by said carriage, and anelectric heating and ignition means directly secured to said cover andpositioned adjacent to said wick structure for igniting the wax thereonwhen electric current is passed through said igniting means.`

JOHN M. POWERS.

